European Parliament and EU Council agreed on simplifying visa regime for Ukraine

As it was reported on Tuesday February 28th by the press-service of the European Parliament in Brussels, members of the Parliament and the European Council agreed to introduce visa-free regime for short trips of Ukrainian citizens to the European Union.

“Ukrainian citizens will be able to travel to the EU without a visa as a result of the informal agreement reached by the Parliament and Council negotiators on Tuesday,” said in a communiqué of the EP.

It also notes that Ukrainians who have biometric passports will be able to travel to the EU for up to 90 days in any 180-day period for business, tourism, or family reasons after the necessary legal acts come into force. Now these agreements need to be approved by the European Parliament Committee on Civil Liberties, and then by the European Parliament as a whole, and after that the decision will be formally approved by the EU Council.

Legislative documents will be signed by the President of the European Parliament Antonio Tajani and representatives of the Maltese Presidency in the EU Council on Wednesday, March 1st, and will enter into force in 20 days after they are published in the EU’s Official Journal, clarified the press service of the European Parliament.

Kiev and the EU started negotiations on the liberalization of the visa regime in 2008. Visa-free regime will apply to all EU member states except for Ireland and the United Kingdom. The message specifically stresses that this regime does not grant the right to work in the European Union.